Purple Asparagus

Founded in 2005, Chicago-based Purple Asparagus is a nonprofit organization dedicated to bringing families back to the table by promoting and enjoying all the things associated with good eating.

The “head spears” behind Purple Asparagus believe that adding enjoyment to a child’s diet is essential to the battle against obesity, experiencing the food of other cultures promotes peace, tolerance and understanding, forging a meaningful connection with local farmers and producers fosters respect for the earth and for community and that bringing children and families back to the table strengthens the bonds of family, no matter how extended.

The organization’s current programs include offering their Healthy Snacks Workshop in schools, a program designed to help Chicago schoolchildren learn better eating habits and make simple, healthy snacks and meals; a partnership with the Department of Family and Support Services Mobile Fairs to teach low-income parents how to cook for their families in healthy, nutritious, and economic way; as well as the Purple Asparagus Roadshow, where they take cooking demos for kids on the road at summertime farmer’s markets throughout the Chicagoland area. Purple Asparagus has also shared their list of healthy snack ideas that can easily be incorporated into schools, daycare and aftercare programs and as afterschool snacks at home!

To learn more about Purple Asparagus and how they’re bringing families back to the table, visit their website.

More from Yum-o!

In southeast Michigan, kids are excited about a new healthy cooking competition, Clash of the Cooking Crews. In the most recent contest, teams from four different middle schools came together to compete and show off the healthy breakfast, lunch and snack recipes they developed during themselves. All recipes were required to meet USDA guidelines and […]

The Charlie Cart Project brings brings together equipment, lessons and partnerships to provide high-quality food and nutrition programs in any educational setting. Its compact mobile kitchen on wheels provides all the tools and equipment needed to start cooking! Research shows that hands-on learning promotes success in science, math and social studies and develops collaboration and […]

As a Yum-o! partner, we’ve talked about how much we like this organization, and you can see from the photos on our website that Rachael and President Clinton are on the same page when it comes to healthy, happy kids. Now we want to tell you about the real impact their programs are making in […]

Receive recipe ideas and cooking tips delivered straight to your inbox. You'll also be the first to know about opportunities to join in Yum-o!'s mission to empower kids and their families to develop healthy relationships with food, feed hungry kids, and fund cooking education and scholarships.